A Digital Reality
by GameShy
Summary: Best friends Maddy and Dess get sucked into a video game unknowingly, but how do they manage to get out? Title suggested by Kairi248.
1. The Second Story

Hey guys! I'm back again after revising all of this junk. Sadly, the first chapter's still short. I tried to fix it and add more, but it just didn't work out. I promise that most of the others are at least twice as long as this. I guess pretty much everything's the same, but there are some minor details that you may or may not want to know for later in the story. For all of those who have already read my story before, the new stuff is halfway through the fifth chapter. For those of you just joining us, welcome! I'll always appreciate new readers. I hope y'all like this because it took a bit of effort on my part. Cheers!

**Disclaimer: The only characters that belong to me are Maddy and Dess. Everything else belongs to Square Enix and whatnot.**

* * *

><p>The cold wind whipped at my face as I walked up my driveway, leaving my nose red and my eyes watering. I grabbed my vibrating phone, flipping it open.<p>

"Dess!" My friend Maddy shouted. "Dess, where are you? I'm sitting here and nobody is around and it's sorta freaky."

"Walking up my driveway," I sighed, closing my phone. Maddy always had a habit of letting herself into my house when I wasn't there to do it for her.

I hopped up the front steps and opened the door, and only seconds later my best friend was jumping around in front of me.

"I'm so excited! What game didja get this week?" Every weekend for as long as I could remember, I'd rent a video game from the movie store down the road and I'd spend all of Friday and Saturday playing it with Maddy. She grabbed the game out of my hands, looking at the cover.

"Kingdom Hearts TWO? They have a second one?" She squealed with delight. "Sora, we're coming to help you find your friends!" She shouted, pumping her fist into the air.

I laughed quietly as I took my coat and shoes off, setting my backpack down at the bottom of our steps. We had a history with that game. Maddy and I had a bit of a dorky side, which included our obsession of Sora and the gang. We had played the first game (although I should really say I played it, considering she usually only watched) and had gotten Kingdom Hearts shirts, jewelry, blankets, and a lot of other merchandise just because of our attachment to it.

"What are we waiting for? Come on, Dess! You're so slow!" Maddy bounded up the steps leading to the second story, where my room happened to be. I followed her at a slower pace, thinking back to all the fun times we had with the game. By the time I got upstairs, she had the play-station set up, the game loading, and the controller in her hands. I sat down next to her, taking the controller while getting comfortable.

"Okay, my mom's getting home at 6:30 or so, and right now..." I looked at the clock, "it's 3:47. So we have a couple hours to play, then she can take us to the movies."

Maddy situated herself next to me, pulling her knees up to her chest. "Oh, goodie! This is so exciting. I can't wait to see what happens! I wish we could really talk to Sora. How cool would that be?"

"Maddy, you're going off on a tangent," I responded to her rambling as the start screen popped up.

Her head rolled my way as her sky blue eyes locked on mine. "Sorry, I guess I just won't be excited about it," she said sarcastically. "Shut up, Dess."

I laughed as the game started off with a guy I recognized as Roxas. Although I didn't know much about the sequel to my favorite video game, I had browsed Wikipedia and read just enough to know that he was the boy with spiky hair and seemed to be very fond of checkered accessories.

Maddy watched the beginning scene with me, her eyes lighting up with excitement. It was always like a new experience for her. Although she never really took part in playing games on our gaming weekends, she still felt just as involved in the story as I did.

I worked my way through the tutorial and onto the game itself, moving along quite fast for my first time playing. Before I knew it, I was at the mansion meeting Naminé for the first time.

"This is fun and all, but where's Sora and Kairi and them?" Maddy asked. After watching me play for some time, boredom won her over and she had situated herself behind me so she could have full access to play with my hair. The only time she looked up was to watch the multiple confrontations with Axel and Roxas. After seeing the red-headed Nobody for the first time, Maddy had declared him as her favorite, and nothing had changed her mind so far.

"Well I think they're trying to restore Sora. Like, all of his memories are inside Roxas or something along those lines," I answered. Truth be told, I hadn't really paid attention to the cut scenes. I usually took a lot of interest in the storylines of the games I was playing, but something seemed off. As we crept closer and closer to Roxas's doom, a feeling of dread festered in the back of my mind.

Almost two hours after starting the game, we were finally to the finale. Roxas walked into the room where Sora was being held, giving a small speech about his summer being over. Although Maddy just rolled her eyes at the tackiness of the situation, I couldn't help but tear up a bit. I wiped my eyes as the screen faded away to reveal the Kingdom Hearts logo.

"And now the real game begins," I said, smiling.

A message box popped up on the screen. "Would you like to continue?"

Although I still had a sick feeling in my stomach, I moved the cursor to "Yes," then pressed X. It wasn't like this game had anything to do with why I was feeling off, right?

I heard the door downstairs open. "I'm home!" My mom called.

I looked back at the screen to see that it shut off.

"You're kidding!" I shouted desperately. "I didn't save any of that!"  
>Maddy looked as if she had something to say, but the lights in my room snapped off before she could get her two cents in. A static noise radiated from my TV, growing louder and louder to the point where I had to cover my ears.<p>

I tried to call out, but my voice caught in my throat. I squeezed my eyes shut. All I could do was hope that this wasn't real.

* * *

><p>So, one chapter down, however many to go. I'll look forward to reviews, criticism, ideas, and anything else that you guys would like to offer up. I would like to give a special thanks to Lexasaurusrex for being an awesome editor. So thanks, and please read and review :)<p> 


	2. Welcome to the Beginning

Okay, moving on to chapter two. We're getting into the real storyline this time, so please stay tuned!

**Disclaimer: I own Maddy and Dess and nothing else.**

* * *

><p>I woke up on a cold stone flooring. I stayed on the ground for a few seconds with my eyes closed, thinking about what happened.<p>

I sat up, blinking twice. Come to think of it, I didn't know what happened.

"Dess," a voice came from behind me. I turned around to see Maddy standing on unsteady feet, looking around in complete shock. "Why are we anywhere but your room?"

_Good question_, I thought, not bothering to voice my opinion. I took a chance to examine my surroundings, spinning in a circle. We were in the middle of a town square, surrounded by buildings that looked like small shops.

"This doesn't look like anywhere I know," I stated.

Maddy took a half step in my direction. "Thanks, Captain Obvious," she joked, remaining awkwardly tense. "But seriously, where are we?"

A lone man stood at one of the shops with a sign of a staff and sword in front of it. At that moment, he seemed like our best bet.

"Excuse me," I said, walking up to the guy, "Could you tell me where we are?"

"Ma'am, you're in Hollow Bastion," he said, smiling. "Can I help you with anything?"

"Uh..." I stuttered. "No, that's it. Thank you." I walked back to Maddy, almost tripping over my own feet.

This was Hollow Bastion? No way, this didn't look anything like the castle of Malificent.

"Well...?" She looked at me expectantly.

"He said this is Hollow Bastion."

"Nu-uh. Drop dead. Hollow Bastion is in Kingdom Hearts, which is a VIDEO GAME! Dess, it's a video game. You don't just appear in a town that's only in a video game. Obviously there's some mistake."

"Maddy, what's the last thing you remember?" I asked quietly.

"Roxas meeting Sora. And the game asked if you'd like to continue or something, and you said yes. God dammit, Dess! Why'd you have to say yes? Sorry... this isn't your fault. Please forgive me," the brunette girl said, pacing back and forth on the concrete walkway.

I held my head, confused from the roller coaster of emotions Maddy was currently experiencing.

"So where do we go from here?" she asked, kicking a small rock on the ground.

"The only way we can go," I said, pointing to the steps to the right of us. I walked that way, knowing Maddy was following. I looked back at her, then turned the corner to see the one and only-

"Cloud!" Maddy said, smiling. I whipped around and elbowed her in the gut, just as the blonde man turned to look at us. I didn't exactly know what was going on, but I got to thinking we weren't suppose to know who he was.

"In the sky!" She said while smiling weakly, obviously getting the message. "They look like... bunnies."

I looked up to see the sky was absolutely clear. Just our luck.

"Is your friend alright?" I looked back down to see he was talking to me.

The legendary Cloud Strife stood in front of _me_, talking to _me. _I stared at him for a long, hard second before even trying to scramble for words.

"Oh, yeah," Maddy piped up, "I'm totally fine! Hi, I'm Maddy," she stuck out her hand.

"Cloud." He took his eyes off of me, accepting her handshake.

"Nice to meet you, Cloud."

The man looked my way again, giving me a weary look.

"I'm Dess," I waved, shrinking away from his gaze.

"Dess?" His eyebrows wrinkled, and I nodded my head in affirmation. "That's an... unusual name."

Before I could reply, Cloud started talking again. "I've never seen your faces in this town before. Are you two new around here?"

"Oh, well-" I stuttered, not having an answer. What _were_ we doing here? "I don't really know. We're lost, I guess."

"I can help you with that," a voice said behind us. I turned around, coming face to face with a smiling brunette in a light pink dress. "Nice to meet you. My name is Aerith."

I smiled back to her, but was cut off before I could speak.

"Oh I love your dress! I'm Maddy, that over there is my friend Dess," she said, nodding her head in my direction.

Aerith's gaze passed between Maddy and I as she smiled at the compliment. "Now, you two are new here?"

Maddy nodded.

"Well," Aerith said, shaking her head the tiniest bit, "if you two come with me, I'm sure I could help you sort things out." She started walking away, but looked back to make sure Maddy and I were following.

I stared forward, wondering if we should follow. Maddy acted on her own accord, grabbing my hand and walking us both off to follow the woman.

* * *

><p>"So if you need anything else, don't hesitate to ask, okay?" Aerith smiled at me.<p>

"Yeah. Thanks so much, you're real help," I answered, returning the smile.

Aerith had led us away from the town square, into the alleys of Hollow Bastion. She had taken us to the town's inn where many of the city residents stayed, and even loaned us some clothing. Aerith gave us tips on fashion as we tried on various clothing. Long before she was done showing us assortments of outfits, I had decided on simple clothes. I wore a baggy, purple stitched shirt with long sleeves and a rounded neck along with a pair of ash gray jeans, color faded at the knees. A black belt with purple stars etched in held them up, while my feet were donned in converse the same shade as my top, although they were a bit too big for my liking. The only accessory that didn't have any use was the jewelry around my neck, a chain link necklace with the zodiac sign for Cancer, perfect for me.

As I entered the room where Maddy was changing, her and Aerith debated which outfit would look cutest on her.

"Dess," my friend called to me, "which one do you think would look better?"

I bit my lip and ruffled the hair hanging in front of my eyes. "Maybe you shouldn't focus so much on looks and more on function."

Maddy nodded understandably before grabbing a pile of clothing to her left and running into another room to change. When she returned, She had a tight fitting black tank top on, trimmed with a thin black lace. Over that she had a grungy red leather jacket, which cut off at her belly button. She had picked out a pair of red jeans which showed their age, ripping at the knees and thighs. She used a chain of metal star cutouts as a belt, though it was mainly just an accessory. For shoes, she had picked out a sensible pair of stone washed, black boots, which went to her calves. She wore multiple, mismatching length silver chains around her neck.

Aerith stood at the front door, examining both Maddy and I. She stepped out of the house, and we followed, only to be met by a weird noise followed by a mysterious circle on the ground. It popped up, causing Maddy to scream.

"Holy- what is that?" she shouted.

"That is the towns defense mechanism. Don't worry, it won't harm you." Aerith gave a small giggle before walking ahead. "I'm going to go meet some of my friends. I think they'd be interested in you, and I think it'd be wonderful if you were to come along."

I gave a small shrug, but before I could answer, I was interrupted by a shout.

"Yuffie!"

My mouth dropped as Maddy turned to me, a huge grin across her face.

"It's him!" She squealed quietly.

"Well I guess we know where Yuffie is," Aerith sighed. "Come on, I'll introduce you guys."

"Hey Yuffie, have you seen the King and Riku?" _he_ asked, a small glimmer of hope in his voice.

"Nope!"

Aerith, Maddy, and I rounded the corner, coming face to face with Yuffie.

"Oh, hi Aerith! Didn't see ya there!" Yuffie backed up a bit, giving us some space. "Who are the friends?"

"Maddy, Dess, this is Yuffie," Aerith spoke lightly, motioning to us.

"Nice to meet you!" Yuffie stuck out her hand.

Maddy reached forward and shook it. "Nice to meet you too!"

Yuffie smiled at me, then turned her attention back to _him_.

"I had a feeling we'd meet again. Now, I'll see you at Merlin's house. The whole gang is here!" she waved goodbye and turned the corner. Aerith looked at _him_, then back to us. "Nice to see you again, Sora, Donald, Goofy."

The three guys smiled, then directed their attention at us.

"Gawrsh, I don't think we've met before," Goofy said, scratching his head.

"Yeah, are you guys new here?" Sora asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Actually we just got here today. I'm Dess." I smiled at the boy I had obsessed with for years. Here I am, meeting the kid that's face is on half of my clothing.

Maddy's eyes widened at the sight of him, and I knew what would happen next all too well. She lunged forward, her arms open wide. Sora stood defenseless against her, and stumbled back a few steps as Maddy collided into him. Her arms closed tightly around him, while the largest smile I had ever seen crawled across her lips. "I'm Maddy," she said, backing up after realizing what she did. Her face turned red as she awkwardly ran her fingers through her hair.

"Uh..." he stuttered, "I'm Sora."

"I'm Goofy, and that's Donald!" Goofy smiled, stepping forward. "Welcome to Hollow Bastion!"

* * *

><p>"Meet the Hollow Bastion restoration committee!" Yuffie shouted as we entered the small house. As Sora moved forward, we stayed close to the door, keeping to ourselves. Although Maddy and I had been welcomed in, it still felt as if we were out of place.<p>

"We missed you," Aerith spoke warmly, touching her hands together.

Cid swiveled around, a long toothpick lodged in his mouth. "Well if you ain't in top shape," he said, moving the toothpick around.

Leon straightened out from his little corner. "I knew it."

Maddy and I stayed back by the door, but Sora and the other two moved ahead.

"Knew what?" Sora asked, tilting his head.

Leon took a step forward, speaking louder. "A while back, everyone suddenly remembered you guys, all at the same time."

Sora stepped back in shock. "You... remembered?" He paused for a second, scratching his head. "Wait! Does that mean you forgot about us?!"

"Thanks," Donald spat sarcastically.

_They forgot him_ I thought, _How could they all just forget?_

"So where've you been all this time?" Yuffie asked.

The gang continued to catch up, talking about Sora's sleeping and where Riku and the King were. They talked about a big Nobody and Heartless problem, and asked if Sora, Donald, and Goofy could help. Of course, they said yes.

Finally, Leon turned to us. "Aerith, were these the two you were telling me about?"

"Yes," Aerith replied. "Do you think I could possibly be right?"

"Hmm..." Leon stepped around us, looking at our backsides. He went to the left of Maddy, moving up close to her face. He looked at her eyes, her nose, her mouth. Then he stepped back, viewing the rest of her body. After a satisfying search of her, he moved on to me, repeating the process. Minute after minute ticked by as he stood there, examining us like we were some foreign creatures.

Finally he took a step back. "Maybe, maybe not."

Aerith sighed, resting her forehead in the crook of her hand. "Leon, are they or are they not?"

"Are we what?" Maddy piped up, glancing at Aerith with a thousand questions in her eyes.

"I honestly can't say," Leon mumbled, leaning on the wall. "Sorry, we'll just have to wait and see."

"Are we _what?_" she asked more impatiently.

As if he was completely oblivious to Maddy's words, Leon headed to the door, and was about to walk out when he turned back to Sora. "Follow me to the bailey - there's something I need you to see."

Leon walked out, and only seconds later a puff of smoke appeared where he stood.

A man with a long beard and a blue robe gathered out of the smoke and dust. "Oh! I thought it was you. Right on time!" He cheered.

"It's Merlin!" Donald gasped.

"Sora and the gang said they were gonna help out! And we got two new crew members on our hands! Merlin, meet Dess and Maddy." Yuffie smiled and pointed in our general direction.

"Splendind!" Merlin said, clapping. He turned to Aerith. "Ah yes, did you give them the cards dear?"

"Oh!" Aerith said. She reached into her back pocket and grabbed three cards, handing them to Sora, Donald, and Goofy. "Here, they're presents for you. Leon thought you might like to have them." She turned her attention to Maddy and I. "And who knows, maybe you two can earn your own," she said with a wink.

"Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee Honorary Member!" Sora gasped.

"Membership cards!" Donald exclaimed with a smile.

"Kinda cool, huh?" Goofy added.

"Hey, thanks Leaaah... huh?" Sora looked confused. "Oh no! we're suppose to be at the bailey! Come on guys! Dess and Maddy, you come too."

We were about to run out when Merlin stopped us. "Hold up a minute. Do any of you have magic?"

Maddy and I looked at each other with questioning looks. _We_ would get to do magic?

"Oh you must have forgotten, I guess I can lend you a few spells." Merlin sighed, reaching into the sleeve of his robe.

* * *

><p>Sora, Donald, and Goofy headed for the bailey, Maddy and I following them. Sora and Maddy were now armed with blizzard, although I had to decline the offer of that power. I hated the cold as it was, I'd just wait until fire or thunder would come along.<p>

The three guys stopped ahead of us while Maddy unknowingly kept walking, running into the back of Sora.

"Oops!" she jumped back quickly, a light blush painting her cheeks. "Sorry..."

Sora smiled at her. "It's fine." He looked up, making eye contact with me. "Do either of you have weapons?"

"Oh..." I said slowly, "No, we don't." I mentally slapped myself. _Dess, you're on a journey to fight the heartless and nobodies! Of course you need a weapon! What did you think, you could just politely ask them to stop? _

Donald held his hand under his chin, deep in thought. "We can go get them some weapons at the store." He started walking the other way, everyone else reluctantly following.

Maddy and I fell behind as she turned to me excitedly.

"What kinda weapon should I get? Oh, I know! I could get a huge hammer that smashes everything around!"

I eyed her slim figure, laughing as I tried to imagine her lugging around a huge hammer. "You? Carry something that big? Come on, Maddy, be reasonable."

She stuck her tongue out at me. "Fine. I'll just see what I like when I get there."

* * *

><p>"It's perfect!" Maddy squealed, picking up two matching fans that fit perfectly in her hands. The ends were pure onyx, while the design on the fans were nobody and heartless symbols linked together, one glowing with a shiny silver while the other had a reflective crimson tint. The background was a marble mix of black and white, and the handles were two tiny rings that could easily clip onto her belt. She grabbed one for each hand, and went to pay.<p>

I, however, couldn't find anything. I looked at the swords, but holding them felt awkward. The staffs were based on magic, which I didn't have at the moment. Shields were out of the question, considering I couldn't throw a regular Frisbee to save my life, let alone an oversized one.

I slowly walked to the back of the store, stopping to look at hand grenades, throwing knives, and the occasional plush doll that could in no way harm someone.

Feeling hopeless, I called to my friend for help. "Maddy! I can't find an-" I stopped after I felt my toe touch something hard, looking down at what my foot had hit. I picked up a gun about the length of my forearm, I examining the pattern and shape of it. The base coat was a sleek black while a pattern of silver fire traced each side of the machine. I hadn't ever seen this type of weapon in the real world at any point, so I figured it was an over exaggeration of a machine gun that most video games had. It came with a simple black harness that would attach to my back, making it easy for me to take my weapon out during battle and put it away when the fight was done.

I walked up to the merchant, laying the gun before him.

"That'll be 400 munny, miss," he smiled, taking the money I held out. "Have a nice day."

"You, too." I grinned back, picking up my weapon and walking to where the gang had accumulated in the middle of the marketplace.

Maddy glanced my way as I approached, raising her eyes in an approving manner as she examined my weapon. "How much munny do we have left?"

Considering Maddy's fans had been 200 munny and we had made sure to stock up on plenty of potions and ethers, I was guessing only a bit was left over. "About 100."

She winced, then turned to the guys. They had gotten some simple bracelets to raise HP and MP, and had even picked up a few for us.

"Thanks," I said to Sora, smiling as I accepted a ash gray band and a purple one.

"Are we all set?" Goofy asked, examining our new weapons.

"Yeah!" Maddy shouted, pumping her fist into the air.

Everyone laughed as we set off to go meet Leon.

* * *

><p>"Hello?" I called down to the bailey, my voice bouncing off the cold stone walls.<p>

"Hello!" Maddy answered me from two feet away, laughing at her own joke.

I rolled my eyes, walking down the stairs. Sora and the others were a couple feet ahead of us, looking for Leon in the musky tunnel.

"Come on, Maddy," I sighed, grabbing her arm and dragging her behind me.

"Oh, what's the rush? Can't you have some fun?" She whined, trying to dig her heels into the ground.

"Look at that," we heard Leon say in his monotone voice.

I glanced up to see him, Sora, Donald, and Goofy all looking over a ledge. I bounded up next to them, Maddy quickly following me. We all looked down at the huge pool of heartless surrounding the old castle.

"Whoa," Maddy whispered.

I glanced downward, seeing that the ground was much farther away than I originally thought. My heart beat a second faster as I stepped away from the ledge, my mind clouding. If there was one thing I couldn't stand, it was heights.

"We want to restore Hollow Bastion to what it used to be. Who knows, maybe even something better," Leon continued, paying no attention to me.

He turned back to Sora. "There's still a lot to do, but I'm sure we can handle everything- except for that," he said, motioning to the heartless. Then he pointed to slinky like white figures walking down the path below us. "And that."

"We'll handle 'em!" Sora spoke proudly, sticking out his chest and pointing to himself enthusiastically.

"That's good to hear," Leon replied. "So Sora, do you know what's going on then?"

I started to wander away, taking a look at our surroundings. My thoughts roamed freely, thinking back to home. I wonder if my mom was looking for Maddy and I. Did she even realize we were gone?

My mind occupied my focus until I heard Goofy mention Organization XIII. I tilted my head. Who? I racked my brain, trying to think about all the time I spent playing as Roxas. Didn't that one guy mention something about a group of people? Ah, what was his name? I thought back to the spiky haired red head. _It was Axel_, I thought.

As if they had been listening to the whole conversation, a deep voice answered Goofy. "You called?"

The four guys looked around while Maddy and I glanced at each other, dumbfounded. Sora ran forward and out of the tunnel, then stopped abruptly and looked around. We followed, trying to pinpoint where the voices were coming from.

"You're doing well," another voice said.

"Who's that?" Sora shouted, summoning the Keyblade.

"This calls for a celebration..." a third voice answered.

Two heartless appeared at the bottom of the steps, which Donald, Goofy, and Leon chased after. Two more appeared from behind, back in the tunnel where we had just come from. I sighed as Sora, Maddy, and I tracked those.

Suddenly, a buzzing sound erupted from somewhere, causing Maddy and I to stop and look at each other in confusion. We glanced back at Sora to see him frozen in place.

"Sora!" I shouted, running toward him. I grabbed his cheeks, squishing them together. Then I grabbed his ears, pulling them outward. He didn't move a muscle for either one. I pushed my pointer finger against the center of his forehead. "Sora, snap out of it!"  
>"Dess," I heard Maddy whisper, pointing at the nobodies we had been pursuing. They were frozen too.<p>

Just as I was about to really freak out, one of the mysterious voices came back. "You!" he shouted, sounding distressed. "You're not suppose to be here!"

"Yeah, I know," I whispered under my breath.

Sora moved again, not noticing that time had stopped for Maddy and I. I looked to my friend, seeing that she was just as confused as I was.

I shook my head, trying to refocus on the battle. The gates in front and behind us both closed, locking us in with our enemies. I drew out my gun as Maddy unclasped the fans from her belt, both of us jumping into a fighting position.

I shot at a dusk moving toward me, examining exactly how my new weapon worked. There was only a slight recoil, and I'm almost positive that I was gifted with the unlimited ammo glitch that a lot of games had. I smiled at my luck, looking back at the nobody. The bullet resembled a nerf dart, and it stuck to the surface of the dusk. In the blink of an eye, it let off an electric wave that shocked the creature. Four more shots and the nobody was gone, leaving behind a little money. I picked up the treasures and moved on to the next enemy, taking that one down too.

When no enemy was pestering me for a quick second, I glanced over at Maddy using her fans. She waved one at a creeper trying to attack her, and a blade of light came out and slashed the nobody. Although her fans weren't as fast as my gun, it only took her half the tries to bring the enemy down. It faded away and she collected her munny, glancing up in my direction. She smiled, but her grin faded as she pointed to the space next to me.

"Watch out!" she yelled a second too late.

My attention had been on Maddy, and had let my guard down. Three sharp talons from a stealthy Nobody dragged across the exposed skin on my arm, tearing apart the muscle underneath. I managed to hold back a scream, but let a hiss escape out of my lips. I bit down hard on my tongue, trying to distract myself away from the pain coursing through my limb.

I turned on the dusk, lashing out with only my hand. My punch landed right in it's face, sending the nobody back a foot. As Sora finished it off with the Keyblade, I shook my hand. The punching idea probably wasn't the best idea on my part. When Sora finished the enemy off, he turned to me.

"Are you okay?" he asked, a worried look on his face.

I grit my teeth. "No." I gave a weak smile. "It hurts."

Sora pulled a potion out of his pocket, handing it to me. "Drink this."

I flipped the cap of with my thumbnail and threw my head back, downing the odd colored drink in one gulp. It burned my mouth and throat as it traveled downwards, leaving a sour and off putting taste in my mouth. "Eugh..." I coughed and wiped my tongue on my sleeve, trying to get rid of the taste.

Before anything else could be said, the strange voices came back. "The Keyblade... a truly marvelous weapon. Were it only in more... capable hands..."

Sora ran back out of the tunnel, once again looking for the voices. "Show yourselves!" he shouted.

Maddy and I quickly followed, meeting up with Donald, Goofy, and Leon. I heard a weird warping noise and looked up at the ledge it had been coming from. A black and purple portal formed, turning to a strange person dressed in a black cloak. He raised one hand, an eerie gesture given the situation, as five more beings, dressed identically to him, appeared.

"Cowards!" Maddy shouted, "Why don't you come down here?"

"Organization XIII!" Goofy gasped from beside me.

"Good!" Sora said, "Now we can settle this!"

I rolled my eyes at the ego of his that I had started to notice. _Sora,_ I thought to myself, shaking my head, _There's no way you could take on six full grown men. I don't care if you're the wielder of the Keyblade, it's just not going to happen. _

"What a shame..." the leader of the group said. "And here I thought we could be friends."

The cloaked beings let off an evil laugh before disappearing back into their portals.

"Stop!" Donald shouted behind me, jumping into the air.

He took off toward the steps leading down, while Sora and Goofy followed. Maddy and I trailed behind, but soon we all came to a stop as one of the cloaked began to form in our path.

Donald hopped backwards, afraid of running into the man. "What's the big idea?!"

"Oopsy – daisy!" the man spat sarcastically.

"Move!" Sora shouted.

"Now, do you think that's polite? Shutting me down like that?" The cloaked figure said, a hint of a mocking sorrow in his voice.

"I said get outta the way!" Sora yelled, clenching his fist.

"As if!" the man retorted, "You can talk all you want, but that won't change a thing."

"Then we're gonna MAKE you move," Donald said angrily, although I doubted he really scared the man. Let's just say that a duck wasn't all that intimidating, no matter how angry.

"See, that would work - if I were just any old dude. 'Cept I'm not. I'm with the Organization. Nothing 'any old' about me." he said, adding his finger quotes around 'any old'.

"Ha! Tough talk for someone who stood on the sidelines while his Nobody flunkeys did the fighting!" Sora fought back.

_Sora, what are you getting yourself into? _I thought. _I'm not an expert, but this guy doesn't look like he could be pushed around so easily._

"Oh, dear," the man said, placing his hands on his hips and leaning forward, "I think you got the wrong impression." He shook his fingers at us mockingly.

"You gonna cry?" Sora retorted.

"As if!" the man said once again. "Why don't I remind you how tough the crowd you're dealing with really is?"

"Remind me?" Sora stopped his verbal assault, looking genuinely confused for a second. He soon wiped it off, falling back into a fighting position.

The man in black began laughing. "That's RIGHT, he used to give me that same exact look."

"I guess you think you can psych me out by saying really random stuff!" Sora retorted, still confused.

"Gee..." the man replied, holding his hand under his chin. "I just don't know."

All was silent. One one side of the line, Sora, Donald, Goofy, Maddy, and I all stood like statues. On the other, the cloaked figure stood alone.

Out of nowhere, a portal began to form around the man. "Be a good boy now!" he called, waving goodbye. And in a second, he was gone.

"Wait!" Donald yelled, running forward and then tripping and landing face first. He lifted his head. "Nuts. He got away."

"That was weird," Sora spoke quietly. "Who gave him the same look?"

"Y'know, I think he was just tryin' to confuse ya," Goofy said, turning to look at Sora.

"Yeah, you're right! Only one me!" Sora said cheerfully, pointing to himself.

I turned to Maddy, speaking quietly so nobody else could hear. "Could he have meant Roxas?" I whispered.

"I think so..." Maddy said slowly, rubbing her chin with a look of thoughtfulness on her face.

"I think we'd better stay quiet. We shouldn't be telling them anything," I responded.

Before Maddy could answer, we saw a bright light floating above Sora. In the middle of the ball was the card he had received from Aerith. It floated higher as the end of the Keyblade began to glow. A marble colored crown appeared beneath Sora, lighting up the surrounding area. Wind began to blow as a light shot out from the card, forming a key hole. Another light came out of the Keyblade, running straight through the key hole.

"Oh... now I get it." Sora said, inspecting his weapon. "that must've been the gate Yen Sid talked about."

"Oh boy!" Donald shouted.

"Sorry to run, Leon." Sora turned now, facing the man who had been standing back this whole time. "but other worlds are calling."

"Organization XIII..." Leon trailed off. "They look tough. Be careful out there."

Sora, Donald, and Goofy all nodded as Sora said his goodbye.

Leon nodded back. "Oh, don't forget those two." I tilted my head and Maddy gave a small wave as he motioned to us.

"Are you guys coming along?" Sora asked.

"You bet!" Maddy answered, "I wouldn't miss this for anything." She grabbed my hand, dragging me behind.

"Bye, Leon," I shouted, waving to him.

"Good luck," he replied. "You're going to need it."

* * *

><p>Thanks again to the lovely Lexasaurusrex for her wonderful editing and magic skills with writing. And thank you to the rest of my readers. All reviews are welcome.<p> 


	3. And We're Off!

Sorry this chapter wasn't as long as the last two. I tried to separate the ride on the gummi ship from the actual adventure in the next world, so the easiest thing for me to do was... well, separate them, I guess. It's pretty self-explanatory. Anyway, the next chapter should be longer, so please don't be too upset with the lack of words in this one.

**Disclaimer: I don't own this.**

* * *

><p>Maddy tugged at the sleeve of my shirt, staring at the beast of a machine parked in front of us.<p>

"Dess," she whispered, "I wouldn't think that they were so... huge."

My mouth was hung wide open, gazing in awe at the size of the Gummi Ship.

Sora looked at me, then to Maddy, then back to me. "Are you alright?" He asked, walking towards the ship.

I pulled at one of the shorter strands of my dirty blonde hair, twisting it around my forefinger. "Yeah. It's just that... wow. That thing is huge."

The boy laughed while boarding our ride. He turned back and beckoned to us. "Well, what are you waiting for? Come on!"

Maddy whistled and walked up the steps. I followed behind, but stopped to take one last look at the town.

_Come on, Dess,_ I thought, _we can come back and visit. No need to get all teared up._ It was a strange feeling, becoming attached to one place so quickly. I cleared my eyes with the palm of my hands, hoping no one saw my loss of composure, and turned back, continuing my walk up.

Now, if the outside of the Gummi Ship was something to gape at, then your jaw would fall off by looking at the inside. In my opinion, the size of the ship was nowhere near to how it was portrayed in the game. As soon as I walked in, I examined our surroundings. Two seats were positioned in front of something that reminded me slightly of a ship's steering wheel. Taking into account that one seat was slightly larger than the other, I assumed the bigger obe was the captain's seat. Behind those were another set of seats, although these were facing the opposite way. A couch was turned towards them, and two small coffee tables were placed between the couch and the seats. The entrance was on the right side of the ship, and another three doors were behind the couch. The first of those led to an apartment sized kitchen, which looked as if it were used only to store food, and not prepare it. The second led to a full bathroom, including one small shower, a toilet, and a sink with a small mirror hanging above it. The third door held a modest sized bedroom, including two sets of bunk beds.

Donald had already situated himself in the bigger drivers seat, while Goofy plopped down in the seat next to his to be the right hand man. Sora fell onto and sprawled himself out on the couch, and Maddy had taken the chair behind Goofy.

I walked over to the only seat left, sitting down on the cushion. I glanced over at Maddy once again, seeing she had made herself comfy. Her legs were propped up on the table and her hands were crossed, resting neatly in her lap.

Maddy closed her eyes, tilted her head back, and soon her breath took on a slow, shallow rhythm.

I gave a sorrow filled smile, thinking about all of the dangers on our trip for the first time. What if I didn't make it out? What if _Maddy_ didn't make it out? As soon as I felt a tear form at the edge of my left eye, I blinked rapidly and pushed the thoughts away. I couldn't imagine life without her. Sure, we had skipped the stage of playing Barbies and hosting tea parties together when we were younger, and there was even a time in junior high when we hated each other, but the bond we had now could never be replaced by anyone.

I gave only another second of my time to the horrible thoughts before I pushed them away.

I leaned my head back and tried to get some rest. Nothing would happen to either of us, I'd make sure of it.

* * *

><p>An hour later, almost everyone was fast asleep. Maddy had switched spots with Goofy in hopes of learning how to drive the ship, but her eyes had refused to stay open and she chose to retreat to the bedroom. She was now sleeping on the top bunk of the bed to the left, while Goofy was resting on the bottom of the right. Donald still drove, and Sora had moved to sit directly across from me.<p>

My head started to fall forward once again as my eyes began to close, but I snapped back up at the last second. I heard a small chuckle and looked up to see Sora laughing at me.

I looked up in his direction, blushing.

"Do you not talk much?" he asked.

I glanced back down, resting my hands in my lap. "What makes you say that?" I asked quietly.

Sora chuckled. "Well, for starters, Maddy does almost all of the talking for you two."

I thought about the amount of time we'd spent together, realizing how much he was right. "I guess I just don't talk much around people I'm not comfortable with. I mean, not that I'm not comfortable around you. I was just-"

"It's fine, Dess," Sora answered, "You're just shy, right?"

"A little." I smiled, glad that he understood.

There was a long silence before Sora spoke again. "Hey Dess?"

I looked up to see the boy was watching me with those hopeful eyes of his. "Yeah?" I asked.

"What's your home like?"

I racked my brain and pondered my thoughts for a minute before answering slowly. "It's nice."

"That's it?"

I shrugged. "There's not much to say about it. What would you like to know?"

"Well," he tapped his chin, deep in thought, "how's it different?"

"For starters, not everyone can just jump into a Gummi Ship and cruise the galaxy," I said, smiling, "You have to go through a lot of special training."

His mouth fell open in a gasp. "How do you get places?"

"That's another thing. Most people don't; we just stay on our world."

He thought about this for a minute, finally accepting my answer. "Like how everything was before the heartless came."

"Yeah."

"Anything else?"

"We don't have heartless," I suggested.

Sora laughed. "I have a feeling that would make my journey a whole lot easier."

Now that I thought about it, a lot of things were different. People couldn't just form weapons out of nothing, bad guys didn't drop money when they died, and there certainly wasn't any "Chosen One" that needed to save the world, nor a world that needed to be saved in the same way this one did. "We have problems in our world, too. Just not the same as yours."

"Like...?" he asked, leaning forward to rest his chin on one hand.

"World hunger is a big thing. Plus we always have wars going on."

Sora's brow furrowed in confusion. "I thought you said there weren't any heartless."

"Not wars with heartless, wars with other people." I rubbed my arm uncomfortably.

"Why?"

I stared at him a few seconds before shrugging my shoulders. "I don't know, to be honest. A lot of reasons," I thought for a moment, then began speaking again, "we learn about them, for as long as I can remember. Our history is just full of wars. It's just the way it always has been."

"Could we ever go see your world?" Sora asked hopefully.

My eyes widened a bit as I thought up a quick lie. "It's really far away. This Gummi Ship would never be able to take us there." Okay, not a complete lie.

"Then how did you get out here?" Sora asked.

I sat in silence, dumbfounded by the question. "I don't really know," I spoke quietly. "Maddy had come over to my house and we were both in my room. The last thing I remember was my mom coming home, and then everything went black. When we woke up, we were in the middle of Hollow Bastion."

"Well maybe you were sent here for a reason," Sora thought out loud.

I laughed sarcastically, my voice echoing across the giant ship. I stayed silent for a moment before speaking again. "What good would Maddy and I do? We can't fight for crap, never had to, not a day in our life 'cause it's not vital for our survival or anything. We barely know anything about heartless and nobodies because we have never had to deal with anything that huge. We barely even know you!"

I regretted my words the moment that hurt flashed across Sora's eyes, even if it was just for a second. The sorrowful emotion disappeared as soon as it came, and was replaced by the ever cheerful smile that he was always wearing. "Then we can start now. I'm Sora, and I'm on a journey to find my friends Riku and Kairi, so we can all go back home to Destiny Island." He stuck out his hand, wanting me to shake it.

I took his hand and returned the gesture, laughing the whole time. "My name is Dess. I somehow ended up here with my best friend, Maddy, and I really don't know what's going on. I'm guessing I'll travel with this boy named Sora that I just met until I find a way back home."

Astonished, Sora drew his hand back slowly. "You're really going to stay with us until it's over?"

"Yeah," I shrugged, "I don't know what else I would do. Might as well."

Sora smiled. "Glad to hear."

* * *

><p>As always, thanks to Lexasaurusrex for her amazing editing and revising. Please review if you have the chance, and stay tuned for the next chapter.<p> 


	4. She's the Man

When we arrived at our destination, the Gummi Ship flashed bright red lights, letting us know that we had begun the landing sequence. The ship gave a slight rumble when it touched down, and the hatch opened with a whirwind of grinding mechanics.

A robotic woman's voice echoed from a speaker system in the ceiling, "Destination reached: Land of the Dragons."

"Whoa!" Maddy whispered in awe. "That's pretty awesome."

Getting down from the ship, my legs felt a little like jelly. I looked over at my friend to see she was having a similar reaction. We wobbled down the exit ramp, laughing as we took our first steps on the ground and almost collapsed.

Donald gave us a weird look as Goofy walked by, uttering a small chuckle.

After everybody was on the ground, I observed the landscape to see we were in a small grove with bamboo acting as a blockade around it. A dirt pathway lead down to a camp, which could be seen through a miniature gap in the bamboo. The shadow of a dragon was plastered on a tall rock, while a person appeared to be talking to the owner of the shadow.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy all huddled together, whispering.

"A heartless?" Donald asked.

_This wasn't going to turn out good,_ I thought,_ I should warn them._ "No, I think it's ju-"

"Let's get the jump on 'im!" Sora planned as him and Donald ran forward.

"Or just completely ignore me," I stated, blowing my bangs out of my face.

Maddy giggled as Goofy spoke up. "Gawrsh, maybe we better look before we leap."

Paying no attention to the warning, the two boys ran forward, uttering their battle cries.

In response, the dragon, who turned out to be not so big, jumped onto the person, both of them screaming in fright.

The three boys stopped, seeing who the dragon was.

"Is that Mushu?" Goofy asked.

Maddy and I walked up behind everyone as I lightly elbowed her. "If that's Mushu..."

"Then that must be Mulan!" She finished for me, staying quiet. "Or, what name did she go by?"

"Ping!" Mushu shouted, pointing to the figure now fumbling for words.

"Mulan Ping?" Donald asked, suspicion written all over his face.

"Just... Ping," Mulan said, trying to act manly, "I am Ping, son of Fa Zhou."

"You know Mushu?" Sora asked.

"Mushu's one of my family guardians."

I thought back to the movie Mulan as Maddy leaned in my direction. "Isn't he a guardian_-to-be_?"

"Yeah, but I don't think it's going to make much of a difference whether Sora and them know that. We should just let him bask in his glory," I answered, shaking my head and laughing at the thought of knocking the dragon off of his high horse.

Goofy stepped forward. "We didn't know we were borrowin' somebody as important as a family guardian."

"Yeah, that's right!" Mushu stood up on his back legs, shaking his fist in Goofy's face. "And that puts you three up to your eyeballs in debt to Ping here."

Maddy giggled from next to me. "Are you sure that letting him 'bask in his glory' is the best idea?"

"Well, guess what, kiddies? It's payback time!" the dragon finished.

Mulan raised an eyebrow at her guardian. "Mushu..." she whispered.

"Ah, they don't mind," Mushu spoke, turning to Sora, "Ain't that right?"

"Hmm," Sora raised his hand to his chin, deep in thought. "Sounds fair."

Mushu negotiated terms on how Sora, Donald, and Goofy would pay Mulan back, while the girl accidentally let slip that she wasn't exactly suppose to be allowed into the army.

"You're a... girl?" Sora gasped as Donald wore an equally surprised expression.

"You didn't notice?" Mulan spoke, her voice drenched in hope.

"Not me." Sora shook his head.

"I think it's working." Mulan smiled and turned her head to Mushu.

"I don't know – those two would fall for anything." The dragon crossed his arms and shook his head.

"I'm right here!" Sora protested as Mulan walked past him.

They started to walk away before looking back and us.

"Who are those girls?" Mushu voiced, raising his hands into the air. "Now we gotta cover up for them, too?!"

I rolled my eyes. "We're not that much trouble. I'll stay here if it's that big of a deal."

"You don't have to, Dess," Sora murmured. His eyes said he felt sorry for leaving me alone here, but he turned to Maddy anyway. "What about you?"

"I think it'd be fun dressing up like a guy. And unlike some losers," she looked over at me as she said that, "I'm willing to do this."

* * *

><p>"I am so not willing to do this!" I puffed, scrubbing the clothes harder. "I forget to say 'sir' one time, and now look at me! I should have stayed with Dess."<p>

**30 Minutes Earlier**

"What are we going to cover you up in?" Goofy asked.

"I guess I can't just walk into camp looking like this," I sighed, looking down at my slightly more-than-a-little-obvious girlish choice of style. The lace was a dead giveaway.

We hid behind a rock as we heard of the soldiers from the camp walking our way, no doubt on duty and guarding the area.

An idea sparked into my head. "Three..." I whispered.

Donald caught on, a mischievous look on his face. "Two..."

"I don't think I like this," Goofy stated, scratching his forehead with a finger.

A burst of energy ran through Sora's eyes. "One!" he shouted.

The three of us toppled the soldier, knocking him out in a few seconds. I quickly removed his armor and padding and put it over my clothes. Luckily, the outfit was only a tad bigger than my size. I pulled my hair up into a manly bun (never thought I'd say those words) to complete the look. Sighing at the final product, I followed behind Sora and the others on the path to camp. I might not be the worlds best disguise artist, but it'd have to do.

**20 Minutes Earlier**

"Remember, girl, man-ly!" Mushu whispered the words of encouragement into Mulan's ear.

In response, Mulan stood up straight, stuck out her chest, and wobbled off right behind Sora and the others.

I giggled and followed behind her, noticing that we were both getting some odd stares. I mimicked the movement of the boys walking in front of us, and soon I got the hang of how they moved. It was awkward, and I still don't fully understand why guys walk that way.

Sora headed into line to sign himself up, only to be cut off by a short man dressed in red. I guessed that it was Yao. "Hey, no cutting!" Sora pouted.

The man turned around, not even thinking twice about socking Sora in the face. The boy fell to the ground as Donald grumbled, leaping onto Yao. A fight ensued between the two as Mulan, Goofy, and I watched them. Another man in yellow stepped in and I remembered him as Ling, and soon a huge guy in blue came along, who I immediately recognized as Chien Po . They all broke out their fists and started swinging each other around, and even Sora jumped back in. Mulan tried to stop the fight, only to be laughed at by the other soldiers.

"Soldiers! Get back in line!" Captain Shang walked down the straight row, eying each and every one of us. His voice echoed with authority, and even scared me into line, but only for a minute. He soon walked away, but not before giving an extra glance in Mulan's direction, then mine.

Just as everything was calm again, Sora turned his head and gasped.

"What are they?" Mulan asked, drawing her sword.

"Heartless," Sora spat.

The men dressed in red, yellow, and blue all cracked their knuckles, getting ready to brawl. They took one look at their enemies, decided it wasn't such a good idea to join the conflict, and took off running.

_Cowards,_ I thought bitterly. I drew my fans, opening them with the flick of a wrist. Getting some more stares from the soldiers in the vicinity, I realized how girly I looked holding two fans. Giving a sheepish grin, I put them back and drew the sword from my belt, a gift from the man no doubt still unconscious in the bamboo grove. As a nightwalker focused in on me, I jumped into a fighting stance, feeling awkward with my new weapon.

I slashed through heartless after heartless, only stopping to throw Mulan a couple potions when she looked low on health.

Before I had worn myself out too much, Sora took care of the last heartless. I grabbed a potion from out of my pocket, ripping the cap off. Downing the drink, I shivered at the texture of it.

"I swear, that was not a potion. I think I just swallowed a freaking slug." I stuck my tongue out, forming a new hatred for the concoctions. "That was disgusting."

**10 Minutes Ago**

"You three. What are your names?" Captain Shang spoke.

The boys answered, each name corresponding with the voice.

"You're welcome in my troop," the Captain stated, "Your battle skills are encouraging." He turned to me. "And you. Your name, soldier?"

"Mad-" I stuttered, my eyes growing wide. My name? "Mad- madness. My name is pure madness, you wouldn't want to know it, sir." the Captain's eyes bore into my skull as I cleared my throat and tried to lower it again. "Buuut you have to know so I'm going to tell you it." I cowered underneath the man as my heart jumped in my chest. "It's Greg, sir."

"Greg?" Captain Shang asked, raising his eyebrow at me.

"Yep. Greg Jr. It was my father's name and my name. But not my grandfather's. He hated the name Greg."

I could hear Mulan laughing next to me as I silently berated myself. Greg? I couldn't have thought up a better name than _Greg_? I don't even sound like I come from around here! Oh god, what if they get suspicious? What if they hunt me down in the middle of the night and slit my throat? Or what if everyone takes my clothing and hangs it up really high where I can't reach, then I'm forced to go out in my underwear to get them? And they aren't even good going out underwear!

I shook my head and focused back on reality just in time to hear Mulan shout "Don't make me-!"

"If Ping trains hard and does his best, he'll get stronger in no time," Sora negotiated. Seeing as this wasn't convincing the Captain, he spoke up again. "Just give us an assignment! We'll show you how well we can work together."

"So you want to be tested?" Shang closed his eyes and nodded his head. "Our orders are to ambush Shan-Yu's army on their way here. They should be coming through the mountain pass."

"We'll smash them!" Donald shouted enthusiastically, pounding his fist into the palm of his other hand.

"I doubt that," Shang belted out, not trying to sugar coat the fact. "You five will be the advance party. Scout out the mountain for my troops."

"Wow, that doesn't sound too hard." I shrugged my shoulders, glad that we weren't faced with a more challenging task.

"That's it?" Sora crossed one foot over the other and tucked his hands behind his head nonchalantly. "No problem. Right?"

"R-right," Mulan stuttered, obviously more frightened than we were.

"I'll brief you on the details later. Return when you're ready to depart," Shang informed us. "Remember, the smallest mission may have the greatest purpose. Stay alert!"

"Sir!" echoed Mulan, Goofy, Donald, and Sora.

"Yeah," I mumbled, observing my nails.

The Captain stepped forward, coming face to face with me. Or rather face to chest, considering I was only about half his height. I tilted my head up to face him, and my chin almost brushed against his armor.

"I think that one of these soldiers needs a lesson on how to respect his superiors. Can you guess which one?"

"Me?" I squeaked.

**Now**

"Yes, sir." I mocked the Captain quietly.

Washing clothes sucked. At home, I hated doing my own laundry. Now I was stuck with sweaty, smelly man laundry for a whole army, and that was no exaggeration.

* * *

><p>From my view of the camp, I saw Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Mulan leaving on their first mission. Maddy sulked and shuffled over to something that looked like a bucket full of clothing.<p>

What is she doing? Why isn't she going with the others? Oh God, what did she do this time?

I sighed and turned to the path leading out of the bamboo fortress, knowing all too well she had probably mouthed off and gotten herself into trouble. Although she'd want to be saved from that situation some time soon, I knew my first priority lay with helping the others on their assignment.

I stepped over the still unconscious soldier that Maddy had mugged, making my way down past the camp and onto a dirt road.

I followed the path I had seen Sora and the others walk down until the road opened up to a clearing surrounded by fence and rock. Water trickled down a cliff, emptying out into a wide but shallow stream, and multiple carts and boxes of fireworks were scattered around the area. The golden sun was placed just above a wooden fence, notifying me that night would soon be upon us.

Goofy and Donald stood on a small stretch of land in the water, back to back, fending off a dozen or so shadows. Sora faced a couple nightwalkers and Mulan was backed up against a closed gate, an assault rider preventing her from running.

I whipped out my gun and jumped forward to help the obviously not very skilled girl, shooting multiple bullets at the horse like creature. She threw me a smile, thankful for the help. We took the heartless down in record time and escaped with barely any injuries. I threw Mulan a potion to be sure she wouldn't get hurt, then focused my attention on the other creatures.

A small shadow was up next. It evaded my first shots, slithering along the ground like a snake hunting for prey. As it jumped up to attack, one of my bullets landed true and shocked the heartless, throwing it back a couple feet. It merged with the ground again, crawling around to try and attack from behind. I whipped around before it could, firing off another round and watching as it landed in a heap on the ground before dissipating.

Wave after wave of heartless came, and although I knew we could handle them, a small voice in the back of my mind reminded me that this was real. There are no second chances now, I thought to myself. This is real.

"Dess, watch out!" Sora shouted as his eyes followed something behind me.

Ducking and just barely dodging the claw of a nightwalker, I jumped back and relentlessly fired my gun. The heartless danced forward again and I slid to the side, out of the line of attack. It stumbled, off-balance after expecting to hit me. I showered it with bullets again, this time knocking the creature down for good.

For first time in a long time, I stopped and admired the small heart that floated out of the disappearing creature. The treasure drifted upward before fading into the sky, going who knows where.

Behind me, Goofy spoke up. "Now that wasn't as hard as you thought it'd be, was it?"

My attention reeled back to the group. The fight was over.

"I guess not," Mulan answered softly.

"Come on, guys. The Captain must be waiting for our return," Sora said, leading the way back to camp. The rest of us followed suit, a proud vibe emanating from the group.

As the tents and soldiers appeared in my line of vision, I parted ways with the others. I didn't bother telling them where I'd be. If they needed me, they'd know where to find me.

I poked a stick at the tiny fire I had made. Although I had been trying to ignore the small tug at my heart, it was hard neglecting the fact that I would be completely alone until tomorrow. Even the unconscious man was now gone.

"Toughen up, Dess. It's not that bad," I spoke to myself, hoping a tiny pep-talk would cheer me up, but the tone of my voice wouldn't fool anyone, myself included. My words did nothing but stress the silence that followed.

I drew my knees to my chest and wrapped my arms around my legs. I didn't want to be isolated, especially in such an unfamiliar place. Who knew what monsters were lurking in the shadows?

"Hey."

I screamed and jumped up, tripping over the log I had been leaning on. I scrambled to my feet and drew my gun, aiming straight at the boy in front of me.

Sora walked closer to me, trying to stifle his laugh. "Dess, it's just me."

My muscles relaxed as I lowered my weapon. I ran a hand through my hair and sat back down, laughing awkwardly. "Please don't do it again." I didn't take the time to ask whether or not he was suppose to be out here. He wasn't the type of person to go against orders just for personal gain.

"I'll try not to," he smiled, stepping around the fire and sitting down next to me. He leaned back and closed his eyes, using the log as a pillow.

A silence fell over us, the only noise being the occasional pop or crackle from the fire. I didn't mind, though; it was peaceful.

The moon overhead was almost at it's fullest, while the stars seemed to be glowing brighter than normal. Not only that, but the number of them seemed to have doubled. Thousands of them were littered the atmosphere, creating the illusion that someone had flicked paint into the heavens.

"The stars are never this bright at home," I whispered, mostly to myself. I could picture it in my mind, my home's sky. There were stars, since I didn't live right in the city, but they weren't as strong as they should have been. I guess that's a side effect of today's world.

Sora shrugged and pursed his lips, but kept his eyes shut. "How come?"

"Too much light. All the homes and buildings and street lamps. They outshine the stars."

He sighed, although I couldn't tell whether it was just drowsiness or annoyance. Not wanting to bother him any more, I decided it was time to get some shut eye. I nestled my head in the crook of an arm, wrapping myself up in the fetal position. Sleep definitely didn't come quickly in such an uncomfortable position, but it was better than nothing.

* * *

><p>The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and Maddy was doing the laundry when I woke from my slumber. I didn't bother asking where she got a washer and dryer from, or how she had brought them into the grove, but instead stood up and allowed my feet to lead me near the edge of a cliff that hadn't been here the night before. Carefully glancing over the edge, I looked downward to see a river trickling at the base of the rock wall, flowing at a quick pace.<p>

As I realized how far down everything was, my vision became fuzzy. Forehead sweating and body shaking, my fear of hights finally convinced me to back away from the edge. "I think I'm gonna be sick," I spoke to myself, holding my stomach with both hands.

Turning around to walk back to camp, I found myself face to face with a man in a black coat.

"You belong to us," he spoke in a deep, demanding voice.

Before I could reply, the wind started acting up. A strong gust blew him into me, but he dissolved into nothing before we collided.

The wind continued to blow, growing in force. It pushed me near the edge and rendered me helpless.

"Gah!" I screamed as I tumbled over the edge. I managed to hang from the cliff by my hands as my fingers dug into the soil where I had just been standing.

I could hear something flying up behind me, although my current situation prevented me from turning around and seeing what was there.

As I tried to guess what was hovering just out of my vision, the dirt began to crumble under my weight. Every second I slipped more and more, and time would soon be running out.

I heard a noise coming from the being behind me. It was an owl. I turned my head just a little bit, seeing the white feathers of a huge creature floating in the air. It cawed again, calling out to me.

"I'm sorry, bird," I spoke through gritted teeth. "I have no clue what you want. And as you can see, I'm not in any situation to be wasting my time with figuring out."

One hand slipped as I let out a squeak of surprise. I tried to swing it back up and grab something again, but nothing was left for me to hold.

The snow white owl called out once more, flying closer. It was bigger than any normal owl would be. It had to be twice my size. It's feathers looked as if they were the same length of my arm, or maybe longer.

"What do you want?" I asked.

My dark blue eyes locked with it's golden ones. It came closer as the last of my fingers began to slip. Close enough for my hanging arm to reach out and brush it's feathers.

I did just that as I finally lost my grip on the dirt, and changed from hanging on the cliff to hanging on the bird. I pulled myself up the side and sat on top of the large creature.

"I sure as Hell hope you're okay with this," I muttered. I blushed and ducked my head as it dawned on me that I was talking to a bird. How ridiculous

The owl took off, soaring through the sky. The wind knotted my hair and made my eyes water, but the view of the world was just too amazing for me to even cliff turned into rolling hills, which then turned into a wide open plain with only a few trees scattered here and there. The flat land dropped off into a large river, which ran all the way to a larger body of water. There, sun reflected off the surface and gave the ocean a crystallized look.

I sat on the birds back for what felt like hours -although it could have been less than 5 minutes- before a small island appeared in the middle of the water. Jagged rocks protruded out of the liquid land, forming a circle. The inside of the island hollowed out and was filled with something white, although I couldn't tell what it was from our distance.

As we flew over the island, I peered over the edge of the feathered beast, trying to get a better look at what was below us. I leaned further, and before I could comprehend what was happening, the owl threw me off it's back and into the pool of white below.

I rapidly gained speed, falling through the sky with an intense force. My arms and legs flailed helplessly as I tried to scream out.

I met the ground with a hard thump, pain lacing through my body.

Closing my eyes, I tried to ignore the hurt by focusing on my surroundings. As I felt around, rocky objects shifted beneath my weight. Whatever I had fallen on was hard and bumpy, and it was more than likely that there was more than one. I grasped one of the entities with my hand and held it above my head, running my fingers over it. The top was soft and round, while the middle seemed to have a couple of holes in the front, while it dropped off in the back. The bottom took on a more of a rectangular shape and had bumps all along the side.

Stumped as to what it could be, I opened my eyes. My breath stopped short as I looked up to see what I had been holding: a human skull.

I shrieked and dropped the matter, trying to scoot backwards as far as I could. Looking around me, I realized that I was surrounded by them. Piles and piles of human bones littered the area, with no ground visible anywhere.

I gagged and looked down, seeing I was standing on what resembled to be arm bones and ribs.

I tried to get away from them, but I was trapped. Human remains were everywhere. There was no escape.

My eyes teared up as I looked to the sky, watching the owl fly off.

"No, don't leave me here!" I cried, jumping and waving my arms. "Please, come back!"

Liquid drops started to fall out of the sky, collecting on my arms. My heart threatened to pop out of my chest as I saw the red tint to the rain. It tainted the remains around me and soaked my clothes.

I cradled my head in my hands, trying to calm myself. Strange people and birds and blood was too much to handle, so I did the last thing I could.

I screamed.

My eyes snapped open as I glanced around, finding myself back in the bamboo grove.

The fire had gone out long ago and stars dominated the night sky, while a cold breeze had taken over the land. Sora had left and I was alone once again.

I curled myself into a ball and tried to push the dream out of my mind, but the images of human bones appeared whenever I closed my eyes.

I definitely wouldn't be getting any more sleep tonight.

* * *

><p>Well, I'm done with chapter four. I'm debating whether I should put up the last one today or tomorrow. It doesn't look like many people are waiting for it, so maybe I can fit in a couple more tweaks and edits before posting it. A round of applause for Lexasaurus; you're always awesome. Please review :)<p> 


	5. A Friendly Meeting

I'm back again with the fifth chapter. For those of you who read my first version of the story, about halfway through this chapter is where the new stuff starts. I hope you all enjoy it because it was really fun for me to write. So far, I've mostly had to go by what goes on in the game, and this was the first part where I got to make up everything. Not to mention, this is where _my_ plot comes into play. I'm pretty excited for it all.

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for the characters Maddy and Dess.**

* * *

><p>"Dess," someone whispered, "Dess, wake up."<p>

I felt a gentle prodding near my ribs and opened my eyes to see light shining down from the canopy above. I sat up quickly, coming face to face with Maddy, who had been unsuspectingly positioned only inches away from me. Sora was a couple feet away, no doubt waiting for me to get my lazy self up.

"Good morning, star shine!" Maddy joked, ruffling my hair.

I stuck my tongue out at her and turned my attention toward Sora. "What measly errands does the _Captain _want us to run for him this time?" I asked.

"Just one more," he responded, "He wants us to secure the mountain pass. Something about joining up with another troop stationed up there."  
>"Oh, great," I moaned, rising to my feet.<p>

Maddy stood back up and began walking out of the grove. She beckoned for Sora to follow. "We'll be waiting out here when you're ready."

I watched them go, then stood up and brushed the dirt and leaves off of my filthy clothing. It was definitely far from satisfactory. The air was moist and stuffy, and my whole body felt gross and unclean, but it'd have to do. Hopefully we'd get out of this world soon and into a better one. Maybe one with a spa.

* * *

><p>"Secure the pass, my rear end," I huffed.<p>

"I'm right there with you," Sora said, wiping his brow.

It just so happened to be that some schmucks had decided they didn't want us getting to the camp at the top of the mountain. Three walls of large rocks had been erected in the middle of the pass, the only pathway leading to our goal. For the past four hours, Sora, Mulan, and I labored away, picking up one rock after another in hopes of clearing a path wide enough for someone like Chien Po to walk through. Donald had weaseled his way out of the hard work (something about moogles and potions) and ended up dragging Goofy along with him. Maddy had pitched in for some time, but, after the weariness had set in, she had chosen a comfortable looking rock located in between rock walls number two and three, and had been feeding us "emotional support" for half the time.

"How is it that we got stuck with all of this, while you're over there lounging?" Mulan asked Maddy, throwing a playful glance her way.

"No, don't start getting negative!" Maddy called over from her perch, "We're doing great!"

I rolled my eyes, picking up another boulder. "What is this _we're _you're talking about?" The muscles in my back threatened to give in every time I lifted one of the large stones, but I pushed on in hopes of having the job sooner rather than later. I carried the slab over to the growing pile of debris and placed it near the side.

I returned to pick up another rock, watching as Sora waddled by with a stone that had to be half his size. At a glance, Mulan seemed to be holding up pretty well, or at least better than Sora and I were.

I shrugged, figuring that our slow pace was better than having nothing done at all. I picked up one of the remaining boulders, dropping it down one of the slopes in the path and smiling as the rock rolled right over the edge of the cliff.

"Well, that took care of that," I said, grinning even more when I heard Maddy giggling behind me.

Mulan and Sora worked together to roll the last, and largest, rock out of the way of the path. I saw Shang climbing the path with his troops, marching in our direction.

Scampering off, I looked for a place to wait until he passed. I chose a tall stone to hide behind, and I sat down and pulled my knees to my chin as I listened to the conversation a couple feet away.

The first words that came to my ears were those of Sora and Maddy, heavily implying how well _Ping _had been doing on the missions.

"Fine," I heard the captain reply, "I'll let you join my troops, but I'm still not convinced you have what it takes to be a worthy soldier."

"Why not?" Sora challenged.

I cringed. Surely the Captain wouldn't appreciate that.

"It's all right, Sora," Mulan replied softly before Shang could react. She sounded more courageous than ever when she added "I'll find a way to show him what I'm made of."

"That's the spirit, Ping!" I could almost hear the captain soften up a little with those words. I heard boots stomping in the dirt and assumed he walked off.

Shortly after Shang left, Donald and Goofy reappeared, holding a dozen potions as a means of apology for not having to suffer through the work with us. The group walked to the new camp, and only Maddy spared a quick glance in the direction of my hiding spot before following suit.

* * *

><p>The sound of a frightened scream drew me towards a small cave just outside the walls of the main camp. I had been sitting quietly in the shadows of one of the many buildings, but I jumped to my feet when the noises reached me. I edged my way around two oblivious soldiers, and was just about to slip into the grotto when a gruff looking man twice the size of the Captain came stomping out of the entrance. I pressed into the rock wall and prayed that the shadows would conceal me.<p>

_That has to be Shan-Yu, _I thought.

The ferocious man's golden eyes swept his surroundings, tossing an extra glance in my vicinity. I clenched my fists and prepared myself to flee, but he just shrugged and walked away.

After Shan-Yu turned out of the cave's mouth, I let out the breath I had been holding and continued to make my way into the dark cavern.

I followed the dark path inside the mountain and stumbled around the bend to see Sora, Donald, and Goofy all trying to push their way through what looked like nothing.

"What are you doing?" I asked whoever happened to be listening, "What happened?"

"Gawrsh! We were just walkin' away when this thing popped up!" Goofy answered, leaning his shoulder on the invisible barricade.

"Ping and Maddy are stuck on the other side," Sora told me, as if I couldn't tell.

There they were, not more than ten feet away from us. Both girls donned their heavy soldier's armor, and I could tell the fight was going to be less in their favor because of it.

I saw a large portal form behind Maddy and tried to shout a warning about the Heartless; however, she continued looking forward. She couldn't hear me. A large assault rider appeared from the darkness and pummeled straight for the unsuspecting brunette. It landed a blow on her left arm, and I could see her face twist in pain. In response, she drew out her fans and sent a wave of light to slice the creature.

Mulan stumbled up to the younger girl's side, her sword awkwardly clutched in shaking hands. She raced forward, almost tripping over her own feet in the process, and raked her weapon down the side of the Heartless. As it fell, the inexperienced girl turned away and set her sight on the next victim.

Maddy took her own two weapons and aimed both at the two shadow Heartless crawling along the floor. Their ink black bodies helped them blend in significantly, but she located them quickly and attacked without mercy.

"How could this have happened?" Sora asked, his eyes glued to the battle playing out.

"Shan-Yu," I answered quietly.

The fight dragged on with me cringing every time Maddy got battered around some more. Although I was worried, it was clear that both girls had definitely gotten stronger and more agile. With each Heartless she took out, Maddy's pride seemed to glow brighter. I definitely couldn't blame her. Both of us went from never fighting a day in our life to beating the life out of our enemies.

Two more assault riders appeared out of black voids, but this time both girls were more prepared to fight. Mulan stumbled as she moved out of the attack zone of the first Heartless, although she recovered in a snap before turning and running back into the battle. She raked her sword down the side of the beast, then stopped behind it. Maddy joined her there, and they both advanced to the enemy. Mulan took the left while Maddy took the right, and the both aimed at the creature's front legs, tripping it and sending it sprawling across the cavern floor. The Heartless dissolved, leaving the girls with only one more obstacle.

They seemed more brave now, not hesitating to run head-first into the battle. The assault rider was down in record time, barely putting forth an effort when compared to the first.

I couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief when the last enemy had fallen and the invisible barrier dissolved before us. I raced forward, hugging Maddy tightly.

"Um... hi," she spoke into my shoulder.

"Don't scare me like that." I gave her shoulders a squeeze before stepping away. "I don't want to lose you."

"I'm fine, Dess," she replied, reaching her right hand across to hold her left arm. Just a couple scratches."

She looked so much smaller just then. More vulnerable. Like she was coming to accept that this wasn't just a game anymore. But just as quick as the image appeared, it left, and the delicate, scared Maddy was replaced with the strong-headed and brave one once again.

"Great job, you guys!" Sora walked forward and gave Mulan a pat on the back.

"You okay?" Goofy asked.

"Yeah, thanks to Ping," Maddy said, throwing the older girl a smile.

Mushu poked his way out of Mulan's armor. "C'mon! Time to report to the Captain!" he said enthusiastically.

"But Shan-Yu wasn't here," Mulan said, clearly puzzled.

"Let me guess," I spoke up, "Mushu was the one who came up with this brilliant plan."

"Girl, don't you start with me!" the dragon snapped back. He continued talking to Mulan. "That Hun is old news! We're gonna tell the Captain how the thousands of Heartless stormed the cave, and Ping took out almost every one of 'em!"

Donald and Goofy walked back to camp with Mulan following shortly behind. Maddy and Sora turned toward me.

"What's your plan, Miss Dessy?" Maddy asked me.

I shot her a daring look. "Dess, not Dessy."

"I'll call you what I want," she taunted me.

"Okay," Sora interrupted us, "I don't want to interrupt your loving chat or anything but what _is _the plan... _Dessy_?" He cracked a smile.

"Don't you start too," I retorted. I paused for a second, then shrugged. There wasn't really anything for me to do. The bamboo grove was nowhere near here, and it didn't look like there was any other hideout I could stay in. "I guess I'll walk out with you guys and pretend to be a villager or something for now."

Maddy raised an eyebrow. "A villager?"

"Yeah, I sort of look like one if you don't look at my face or clothes," I replied.

"So what part of you are they supposed to look at then?" Sora asked, scratching his head.

Maddy rolled her eyes, then started walking out of the cave. "Well, good luck with that plan."

Sora and I followed close behind, catching up to her at the entrance. We trudged out of the cave and back into the sunlight, making small talk as we walked back to the village. The mood ran sour the second we turned the corner.

Before us, the camp that had been here before was gone. It looked like a fire had been unleashed, half of the buildings scorched beyond recognition, and the other half lying in ruins.

"Oh," Sora gasped.

"God," Maddy finished for him, covering her mouth with a hand.

My blood ran cold as I heard a shout in the distance.

"Captain!" Mulan called, rushing to the side of one of the homes.

Sora took off after her, with Maddy hot on his trail. I stayed where I was, ready to make a quick escape so Shang wouldn't see me and become suspicious.

"It's just a scratch," I heard the older man say, followed by a noise of something falling to the ground and a gasp for air.

"Captain," Mulan deadpanned, "the enemy! Where did they go?"

"They went toward the summit," he answered with a voice drenched in pain and fatigue.

"We'll stop them."

"It kinda _is_ our fault," Goofy spoke up, sounding guilty.

"Right." Mulan's voice sounded even worse than Goofy's.

I could hear small footsteps as Mushu began to talk. "You mean _my_ fault."

"Shan-Yu and the Heartless did this," argued Sora, "Not us! Captain, if you track down the villagers, we'll handle this."

I heard the chains on Sora's outfit clink together and peeked around the the corner of my hiding spot to see Sora examining the vicinity. He turned in a full circle before his eyes made contact with mine. "Let's go."

The group of five traveled back to where I was positioned. I gave a not for reassurance and followed behind them as we made our way to the ridge of the mountain.

The mountain path traveled for miles, twisting and winding up the snowy hills. We trekked for hours, the climb getting harder and harder as time went on. The further we walked, the harder it was to see. The increased snowfall blinded my vision and chilled me to the bones, not to mention the roar of the wind made it next to impossible to hear anything. I could just make out the shapes of Maddy and what could have been either Sora or Goofy, but, other than that, the white of snow was all my eyes could see.

"We're almost to the top," I just barely heard someone call out.

"Can I go back to camp?" someone else shouted, most likely Maddy.

I was just about to make my own comment when a strange feeling prevented me. I stopped in my tracks and looked around. Something was wrong.

I thought about shouting a warning to the others, but a gloved hand over my mouth restricted me. I struggled and tried to break free from my captor, but every second left me weaker than the last. My vision began to swell with darkness and, ahead of me, the last images of my friends began to blend in with the snow. They were unknowingly deserting me. I'd have to face this problem on my own.

* * *

><p>A dark cloud hung over my body. The setting around me swam in and out of my vision, but always remained just out of reach. I couldn't tell where I was, how I got there, or if I was even still alive.<p>

_Maybe this is what death is like_, I thought solemnly, _Maddy sure is going to be pissed at me after this one._

"Why her?" A male's voice asked on the edge of my thoughts.

_Well, guess I'm not dead_, I mused. A warm sensation immersed me as if my subconscious were laughing.

"She's pretty enough," added another.

I felt the warmth of a hand stroke my face, and two fingers tilted my chin upwards.

"Beauty has nothing to do with it," the first individual disagreed, "They let you in, didn't they? Anyway, I was talking about how she gave up so easily."

"As if," a third voice responded, deeper than the other two, "Have someone knock you out from behind and tell me how much of a fight you put up." Muffled boot steps lead away from me, then stopped. "She's more powerful than you think. _Definitely _the one we've been searching for."

I cracked open my eyes, adjusting my sight to a dimly lit cave. I was lying on the ground, back in the same place where Mulan and Maddy had been trapped, except they weren't here this time. Instead, three men in black cloaks were present.

_Their clothes... they must be a part of the Organization._

The first man, crouching in front of me now, was inspecting me with sea green eyes. Beneath each emerald orb, a black tear-shaped tattoo scarred his skin. "Oh, lookie here. The princess is waking up." He slid a hand under my head and lifted it an inch off the ground. "How was your beauty sleep?"

"Just amazing!" one of the men further away mocked me in a girlish voice, clasping his hands together. He looked like he could be the youngest of the group, with spiked blonde hair and sharp sapphire eyes.

"Hey." The hand holding my head turned me back to look his way, forcing my attention on him.

The man's face was pale and pointed, which seemed to go well with his long and spiked red hair. He looked so familiar, yet where could I have seen someone so eccentric? He looked almost like...

"Axel," I whispered. That's who it was. He was the Nobody that had cared about Roxas so much.

A look of shock passed over his face as he recoiled his hand in the blink of an eye. My head fell back on the ground with a thymp as he continued to glare at me. "How do you know me?"

"Ow..." I moaned, bringing my hand up to rub the point of impact.

"Not so fast," the blonde mouthed, hastily stepping forward and grabbing my wrist "You gotta watch this little vixen, Axel."  
>I tried to pull my arm back, but his grip remained solid. "I was just rubbing my head, you creep!"<p>

I heard a sharp laugh and focused my attention to the back of the cavern, where the oldest Nobody stood. The first characteristic to jump out at me was the black patch covering his right eye, but the deep scar running down the left side of his chiseled jaw was just as prominent. "She's getting feisty now."

Axel stood up and backed away a look of surprise and confusion still etched on his face.

I felt a tug on my arm and turned to see the blonde pulling me upwards. "Come on, to your feet now. Don't keep us waiting."

I had no choice but to comply. I stood up and tried to balance on shaky legs. The hand holding me back let go, the young boy stelling away to give me space. Once I gained my footing, I looked around the cave to find three pairs of expectant eyes staring back.

"What do you want from me?" I asked fiercly, hoping that my voice wouldn't betray the fear in my heart.

My act was rewarded with laughter from each Nobody except for Axel, whose face remained stone cold.

"Xigbar," the red head firected a bitter voice at the superior member of the group. "I don't want to bust your bubble, but she doesn't look capable of anything."  
>The older Nobody rubbed the scar trailing his cheek as if deep in thought. "I know she's it. Boss said so," he finally responded.<p>

The blonde rubbed the back of his neck. "You're nuts."  
>"Just tell us what we need to do," Axel deadpanned.<p>

"Get her to work," Xigbar said before enveloping himself in a dark portal and disappearing.

"You heard him, Demyx," the red head ordered.

The blonde Nobody waved his hand as if pushing Axel's words away, then turned to analyze me. "Where's your weapon?"

I reached my hand around to my backside where the harness that help my gun was usually located, but it wasn't there. Scanning the cavern, I found the machine on the far side of the room, presumably so I wouldn't be able to reach it. I pointed in that direction.

"Not that weapon," Demyx replied, sighing, "Your _other_ weapon."

"Other weapon," I echoed. _What other weapon?_

Axel rolled his eyes, then pinched the bridge of his nose with a thumb and forefinger. "Looks like we've got ourselves a real stunner this time," he spat sarcastically.

Demyx stepped away from me and held his hand out. In a blink, a long guitar-like instrument was in his grasp. Axel followed suit, summoning his memorable chakrams in both hands.

I pouted my lips and furrowed a brow, crossing arms over my chest in defense. "Yeah, but you're..." I stuttered, "You guys are part of the Organization! I can't do that!"

The red head clenched his jaw out of frustration. "Oh, believe me. Yes. You. Can."

I stuck out my hand like the two Nobodies had done, but no sword or ax appeared.

"Try again," Demyx urged.

I threw out my other hand, fear leading me to hope that something would happen. My wish was crushed as my palm stayed empty.

The red head kicked a small rock, twisting a chakram around one hand. "Try again."

I dropped my arm and clenched my fists, frustration coursing through me. "I can't!" I yelled back, "Just let me use my gun."

Axel stalked over to where the mechanism lay. "You mean this one?" he responded angrily. With an unrelenting force, the Nobody launched a chakram forward. It cut through my gun in one clean sweep, leaving the machine in two halves.

My temple flared, and I narrowed my eyes. I had grown quite fond of that gun.

He turned on me once again, a new and more frightening look in his forest eyes. The knuckles grasping his weapons turned white, and an agitated look twisted his face.

Demyx stepped forward, one hand nervously toying with an earlobe. "Maybe Xigbar was wrong," he said feebly, "We should just leave her alone for a..." He trailed off after seeing Axel's threatening gaze.

"No!" the older Nobody retorted, "She's it." His eyes locked with mine as he spoke in a dark tone, "Draw your weapon. Now."

I tried to conceal my fear, although I knew my heart was about ready to burst out of my chest. "I don't know what you want me to do. I can't," I countered.

Axel sighed one more time before one flick of the wrist sent a flaming weapon hurling my way.

My first reaction was to shield my face with crossed arms and pinch my eyes shut. I waited to feel the stinging pain of fire lapping at my skin, but instead I heard the sound of metal on metal echoing throughout the cavern.

When I heard both Nobodies gasp, I cracked one eye open to see a sword in my palms.

Demyx let out a low whistle as he picked up his sitar and walked around me in a semi-circle. "Well, I'll be damned."

Demyx let out a low whistle as he picked up his sitar and walked around me in a semi-circle. "Well, I'll be damned."

Axel stood straight, letting his chakrams disappear with a puff of smoke. "Well, well, well."

Against all odds, I was now holding my own weapon, just like they had predicted. Resting it in my right hand, I ran a finger over the dark ebony hilt of the sword. The pummel was a chunk of obsidian carved into the symbol for infinity, made to balance out the long blade made out of metal as dark as the night sky.

Axel walked over to Demyx, standing to the younger Nobody. "Now that we know she's who we were looking for, the second question comes into play."

"Can she fight?" Demyx grabbed the neck of the sitar with one hand, then strummed it with the other. A dozen replicas of the blonde popped up around him, liquidized in form. "Now dance!"

Water sprites, I quickly realized. They sauntered towards me, their long, limber legs stretching out in front of them, as they quickly approached, their weapons drawn.

I quickly flipped my sword to a fighting position and changed my stance to battle ready. I charged forward, barely ducking my head in time to miss the swinging instrument of the first doppelganger. My blade spun around, connecting with it's torso and slicing through to the other side. Feeling the presence of another Nobody copy behind me, I dropped to the ground and felt the weapon skim only inches above my head. I pivoted around, taking my blade with me. It slashed through two more sprites and nicked a third.

From nowhere, one of the blunt instruments hacked into my shoulder. Gritting my teeth, I twisted my body away from the enemy's grip. I sunk my blade into its back, relief washing over me as I realized it was down. Only two more still stood, dancing around the room to an unsung melody. I darted for the one closest to me, lunging my sword forward and breaking the apparition's lifeline.

Spinning on the tips of my feet, my eyes hurriedly searched for my last target. Before I could accumulate an appropriate reaction, the water puppet was overpowering me, swinging its sitar with an unforgiving force. The weapon connected with my left rib, leaving me gasping for breath. Flesh ripped and a bone cracked. I fell to my knees, clutching the bloody wound. The pain was that I had never felt before. I was positive that a rib or two were broken. I stayed down, my head facing the floor, hiding the tears that were welling in my eyes.

"Looks like you weren't good enough," Demyx addressed me after a short pause, a smug look settling on his face.

Axel shrugged, crossing skinny arms in front of his chest.

The boys' eyes met for a second, emerald locked on icy blue. The blonde shifted first, clencing his fists before stepping back into a portal forming behind him.

Axel walked to where I knelt on the ground, coming down to one knee to be at my height. He grabbed a fistfull of my sweatshirt, forcing my gaze upward to match his. "I don't know how you know who I am, but you better watch your back."

My eyes narrowed, but I remained silent.

"That's fine; don't talk." He paused, thinking for a second. "Your friends are at the Emperor's palace. Better hurry." He released my clothing with a small shove backwards. I fell back onto my hands as he disappearing into another dark gateway.

The room was thrown into an eerie silence. I tried to take a deep breath, only to be stopped by a racking pain gripping my body. A gasp escaped my mouth, causing even more discomfort.

I grimaced as I used the rest of my strength to push myself to unsteady feet. Taking a deep breath, I limped out of the cave, very well knowing I'd have to walk all the way down the mountain with this pain, maybe even further if luck was against me.

The journey was slow and nerve wracking, every step feeling like a mile. Just walking around the bend and into the burnt village felt like an eternity. I worked my way past the camp and down the mountain side, biting my lip and trying to avoid the pain throbbing in the left side of my torso. Drops of blood from my unattended wound revealed the path I had followed all the way from the cave to where I stood now. It hurt to walk, hurt to breathe. My body plead for me to give up, but I had the sinking feeling that if I fell down now, I'd never get back up again.

"This is dumb," I spat, wiping my forehead with the back of a hand caked in blood and dirt.

My feet ached from the travel, and the rocks beneath me shifted with every stride I took. A good half hour was dedicated to the walk from snowy hills to dirt roads, and it took twice as much time for any plant life to appear. My mood elevated (although only slighty) when I found myself hobbling around a bend that lead back to the hollow where our first mission took place.

I limped to the shallow stream in the middle of the clearing, letting myself fall to my knees when I reached the edge. I slipped the fishnet glove off of my right hand, then dipped four fingers into the cool water. I brought the liquid up to my face, wiping the dirt off of my forehead and then my cheeks. Just washing the upper half of my body sucked up all of my energy, leaving me lightheaded.

As I continued to scrub myself clean, the pain throbbed in my left side, demanding to be felt. I examined my torso and was surprised to see that the blood had soaked through my shirt. I tried to think of a way to stop the wound from draining vital fluids, knowing that I'd be in deep trouble if I didn't do something about it soon.

I lifted my shirt, peeling it off of my sticky skin. I was barely able to stop myself from emptying my stomach after seeing the wound. Brown and yellow bruises covered the majority of my stomach, and blood was present wherever those weren't. It was hard to pinpoint the exact location of where the damage began, and my mind was already starting to go fuzzy.

"Oh shit," I whispered, barely able to catch my breath.

All I could do was poke around the gashes until I found places where the skin was ripped. I felt my torso from top to bottom, unable to suppress a gasp of pain when I discovered the entry wound. My fingers fumbled as I tried to put extra pressure on the side of my body, a hoarse cry catching in my throat. I clutched my head as my body involuntarily tilted backwards. Hard as I tried to fight it, my view of the landscape around me blurred and doubled. Then the ground met my cheek, knocking the last of my breath out of me.

* * *

><p>Ooh, cliffhanger! How exciting! I hope you guys enjoyed the story so far. I might not be so quick with the next one. Best case scenario, it's up this weekend. Worst case scenario, I go back into hibernation for a while and don't post again until the summer. Either way, it doesn't really matter considering the world's going to end in eleven days. Hooray!<p>

As always, thanks to Lexasaurusrex for reading and editing my chapters. You had to deal with Dess explaining to Sora what a cellphone was, so I'm grateful you don't hate me by now.

To my one other reviewer, thanks for sticking with me through this whole year or something that I've been working on this. It means a lot to know that not just my friends are reading this. Or friend. What I'm trying to say is thanks.

To anybody else reading this, please review and give me feedback. I want to know how to make this story better in all ways possible. I'd also like to hear what you think about it so far and what you'd like to see in the future. Plus, I just absolutely love reading through what people have to say about my story, and it makes my day whenever I see that someone else has reviewed.


End file.
